


neca aut necare

by king_or_2_queens



Series: a fabella de violaceus [1]
Category: Assassination Classroom
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Character Study, Child Abuse, Discrimination, Established Relationship, Gen, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Karma is a little shit, M/M, Making Out, Nagisa is a cinnamon roll, Ninth graders, Wordcount: 1.000-5.000, but also a cold-blooded killer, cuteness, i guess?, most of the characters are irrelevant tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-18
Updated: 2016-05-18
Packaged: 2018-06-09 04:24:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6889879
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/king_or_2_queens/pseuds/king_or_2_queens
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><em>"You missed a lot of the first month while you were suspended, so you weren't there for the first assembly. They're awful. I mean, they're always bullying us, but somehow it feels a lot worse when the whole school is there laughing at you."</em><br/>or, what happened before, during and after the assembly which took place in Chapter 11 of the manga.</p>
            </blockquote>





	neca aut necare

**Author's Note:**

> Please excuse my bastardisation of Latin. XD I'm planning to write two full-fledged KaruNagi fics in the future. One would be totally AU, with all the characters as mythical creatures (very exciting), and one would be only slightly AU - post-canon, with Karma all in politics, and Nagisa as his bodyguard/lover. So this is the first in a series of (supposed to be) short stories which will consist of me examining and narrating Nagisa and Karma's relationship with each other and others from various angles and in various situations. Not to be taken too seriously, but I would appreciate any attention anyways! :*

**~ _a story in violet:_** _kill or be killed_ **~**

* * *

 

“Don’t forget, class!”  Koro-sensei called out to the students as they packed their things. “There’s a school-wide assembly in the main gym, so we’ll be missing first period tomorrow.”

Kayano groaned from Nagisa’s left, along with the majority of the class. “Great, another sixty minutes of verbal abuse!” she whined. Nagisa agreed with the sentiment, frowning slightly as he closed his _Koro-sensei’s Weaknesses_ notebook. Nagisa put the last of his books into his backpack before standing up.

Reflexively, he covered his head with his arms to keep his hair-ties in place as Koro-sensei flew from the classroom at Mach 20, saying that he was off to see a football game in Brazil.

Everyone despised school assemblies, as they were just an opportunity for the E Class’s higher-ranked peers - and even Kunugigaoka’s principal - to insult them and play childish pranks on them. Nagisa recalled vividly the moment when he’d realised that he’d lost two of his only friends to the wretched social hierarchy of the school.

 _“Uhm, sorry, Nagisa-kun,”_   _Tanaka_ _said, smiling awkwardly. “We can’t come over today.”_

_“Yeah, sorry,” Takada reiterated, sneering openly. “We’ve got too much homework.”_

_“Really?” Nagisa said, surprised. “But we just started the school year.”_

_“Yeah, well...not all of us are stupid enough to be in the End Class. We actually_ do _our work_ . _” Tanaka scoffed. Takada laughed raucously as Nagisa’s face flushed with shame._

“Nagisa?”

Karma’s voice pulled Nagisa from his thoughts, and he realised that the classroom was empty except for him, Karma, and Kayano.

Karma sipped from his juice box, looking at Nagisa questioningly, and Kayano seemed concerned.

“Oh, sorry, guys,” Nagisa apologised, standing up with his book bag. “Let’s go.”

* * *

“See you tomorrow morning!” Kayano called as she turned towards her own house.

Nagisa waved halfheartedly before turning away.

Karma grabbed Nagisa's hand and tangled their fingers together, bringing Nagisa to a halt. “What?”

“What’s up?” Karma asked, eyebrows raised in inquiry. “You’ve been acting weird since the end of the school day.”

Nagisa sighed and tugged on Karma’s hand so that he would resume walking. “You missed a lot of the first month while you were suspended, so you weren't there for the first assembly. They’re awful. I mean,” Nagisa paused, remembering how easily his “friends” had turned on him once it had become clear that he was being assigned to the E class for his third year at Kunugigaoka. “They’re always bullying us, but somehow it feels a lot worse when the entire school is there laughing at you…”

Karma shrugged as they turned the last corner before the Shiota household. “Then don’t go.”

Nagisa rolled his eyes and laughed a little. “I’m not _you,_ Karma. I can’t just skip a school assembly and get away with it. My mom would kill me when she found out.”

“She would also kill you if she found out you had a secret boyfriend, but...here I am,” Karma said, and even though Nagisa wasn’t looking at his face, he could hear the smirk in his voice. He shoved his boyfriend a little bit, and the two of them broke out laughing.

Nagisa stopped walking just before they reached his house, just in case his mom was watching through one of the windows at the front of the house. “Bye, Karma,” Nagisa said, still smiling slightly. “I’ll email you.”

Karma leaned down expectantly, and Nagisa tilted his head up so that their lips met in a quick peck. Karma gave him a backwards wave as he walked away, heading towards his own home, and Nagisa adjusted the strap of his bookbag before heading for the front door.

* * *

“So, Nagisa - I received a message from your school today telling me that there would be an assembly at the main campus,” Nagisa’s mother said over the dinner table. “Make sure you look your best - I want you to make a good impression on the principal. You know I’m working hard to help you get back into the D class.”

Nagisa had a hard time believing her placid smile and warm gaze when his forehead was still pulsing with pain from the way she had slammed his face into the table and ripped out his hair-ties just a few minutes ago, furiously scolding him for hiding his “beautiful hair, much longer than _my_ mother would have allowed.”

Nagisa also highly doubted that the principal would look at him for longer than the spare moments required for him to sneer down his nose at the E Class while he told his disparaging jokes, but he outwardly agreed with his mother to placate her, not wanting to start yet another heated argument. “Thank you, mother,” Nagisa intoned obediently. As long as he went along with whatever his mother said, she usually let him go into his room without a fuss.

Hiromi gave her son a short nod, and Nagisa quickly washed his bowls before heading to his bedroom, sighing in relief as he flopped down on his bed, glad he’d sidestepped another dark moment like the one earlier.

* * *

 **From:** Karma Akabane

 **Subject:** (No subject)

**Received 20:45**

how was dinner?

 **From:** Me

 **Subject:** Re: (No subject)

**Sent 21:02**

sucked. Mom being mom as usual

 **From:** Karma Akabane

 **Subject:** :(

**Received 21:04**

she hurt u?

 **From:** Me

 **Subject:** Re: :(

**Sent 21:06**

yeah. my forehead will bruise

 **From:** Karma Akabane

 **Subject:** Re: re: :(

**Received 21:10**

fuck. :(( take 2 ibuprofen and use some ice, k?

I’m sorry about ur mom

 **From:** Me

 **Subject:** Re: re: re: :(

**Sent 21:12**

ty. and not your fault. I should be seeing

dad this week, tho. I’ll talk 2 him about her

 **From:** Karma Akabane

 **Subject:** OK

**Received 21:15**

let me know if I can do anything 2 help with ur mom,

I’ll get Okuda-san to make something special if you need >:^)

 **From:** Me

 **Subject:** Stupid

**Sent 21:17**

don’t get arrested, stupid. get some sleep. xx

 **From:** Karma Akabane

 **Subject:** Re: Stupid

**Received 21:20**

I’m brilliant and u know it. :P gnight xo

* * *

A dark cloud loomed over Class 3-E that day, as it did every time there was a school-wide assembly. The students whispered to each other about assassination plans, trying to hide their despair under bloodlust, but the conversation was very strained regardless. Karma, however, having not experienced the assemblies, had no such reservations. His chatter had been irritating their classmates, so Nagisa had dragged him out of the classroom and the building before they could use his boyfriend as a test subject for how long it would take to beat a fourteen-year-old boy to death with a bunch of Anti-Sensei knives.

“Do you really have to go to the assembly?” Karma whined (though Nagisa was sure he would deny it was a whine with his dying breath).

Nagisa rolled his eyes for the tenth time that morning, picking at the grass on the ground where he sat. “Yes, Karma. They take attendance - my mom would know if I skipped with you.”

Karma stared blankly at his boyfriend, and Nagisa got the impression that gears were turning inside of his head. “No, Karma. I’m going to the assembly, and that’s that,” he said plainly.

Karma raised his eyebrows, leaning in closer. “Fine, but this is what you’ll be missing out on.”

Karma boldly rested one hand on Nagisa's right thigh before pressing their lips together. Nagisa flushed, caught off guard and hoping that none of their classmates could see. After a few moments, Karma shifted and brought his other hand up to Nagisa’s face to manipulate him into a better position. Karma swiped his thumb underneath Nagisa’s bottom lip, coaxing his mouth open. Once his boyfriend’s lips parted, Karma teasingly licked at the inside of Nagisa’s lips, urging him to reciprocate. At the same time, his left hand massaged higher and higher on Nagisa’s thigh until he tightly grasped a handful of Nagisa’s butt, causing Nagisa to gasp into Karma’s mouth, rocking his hips forward and up into empty air.

Karma smirked against Nagisa’s mouth and pulled away, giving Nagisa’s bottom a short pat as he did so. “See you after the assembly!” Karma chirped, laying back on the grass and promptly closing his eyes.

Nagisa’s mouth worked in frustration, but he couldn’t get any words out. Instead, he pushed himself up, vaguely aroused and distinctly irritated as he swiped dirt and blades of grass off of his pants, and walked back towards the building.

“Bring me back some juice!” Karma called to his retreating back.

* * *

 _I hate school assemblies_ , Nagisa groaned inwardly. _Why didn’t I go with Karma again?_

“Nagisa-kun!” Takada called in his nasally voice. Nagisa turned to face him, grimacing as he did so. Takada waved back at him. “Good job...It must be hard work to come all the way down here for this!”

He and Tanaka burst out into scathing laughter before striding away, superiority and self-satisfaction ingrained in the angle of their spines and the width of their gait.

In fact, as Nagisa looked around, he noticed much of the same occurring everywhere in the gymnasium - E-Class students looking anywhere between irritated and defeated, and main building students laughing behind their hands nearby.

The principal began his usual spiel, and Nagisa shifted self-consciously. He’d spent half an hour pressing his white shirt and black vest as best as possible this morning, wary of his mother’s reaction if he left for school in his usual rumpled attire. He knew that she would prefer it if he wore a skirt and blazer as was standard for the girls attending Kunugigaoka, but there was only so far Nagisa would go to please his mother.

“...In short, you’re all elites selected from the best of the best nationwide. As your principal, I can guarantee it,” the principal continued. Then, his eyes slid over to the right side of the gym, where the E-Class was lined up, heads bowed. “Still, pride is a powerful enemy. If you become too prideful, you’ll end up like a _certain group_ of hopeless someones.”

His snide tone left no question as to who the _hopeless someones_ were.

The gymnasium was suddenly filled with piercing laughter at the expense of the E-Class, and the E-Class students stared at their feet, ashamed and furious. Nagisa shivered when Sugaya’s low exhale ruffled the short hairs at the nape of his neck.

“Hey, Nagisa,” Sugaya said, prompting Nagisa to turn towards him. “Where’s Karma?”

Nagisa exhaled sharply through his nose and rolled his eyes, still annoyed. “Skipping,” he replied shortly. “He said that he isn’t coming to the assembly, and he doesn’t care if he’s punished for it.”

Despite himself, Nagisa smiled slightly. “Getting good grades and being bad...It’s times like these when I’m jealous of him,” he lamented aloud. In his head, though, he admitted, _That’s why I like him in the first place…_

Sugaya chuckled quietly. “I can imagine him now, that smug bastard.”

Nagisa could too, but the image of Karma he was conjuring probably didn’t have quite the same connotation as Sugaya’s.

In Nagisa’s mind, Karma reclined on the grassy slope that led up to the E Class’s classroom. The top two buttons of his white shirt were enticingly undone, exposing his collarbones and a peek at the pale expanse of his pectorals. His long legs were spread encouragingly wide, and his arms were folded beneath his head, propping it up so that he could gaze up at Nagisa with half-lidded eyes, mischief in the sly gold of his gaze. _Why didn’t you want to_ come _with me?_ Karma’s eyes seemed to say, beckoning him, pulling him in -

Nagisa forced out a laugh before his little fantasy could nudge his traitorous body past the boundaries of what was proper in a public setting. Sometimes, he deeply despised being yet another fourteen-year-old boy who couldn’t control his bodily responses.

“Moving on,” the principal continued, wiping tears of mirth from his eyes, “we have an announcement from the student council. Student council, please start setting up your equipment.”

Before they could begin, though, Karasuma stepped up to the front of the gym, which set off a whole new round of whispers. Karasuma muttered a few words to one of the main building teachers, who flushed and demurely covered her mouth. Karasuma nodded briskly before turning back to the E-Class students. Karasuma’s signature cool, controlled expression became one of fury and chastisement when Nakamura and Kurahashi brandished their bejeweled knife sheaths at him, clearly begging for attention.

 _Then_ , Irina strode into the gym, slamming the doors open as she came. Male and female faculty alike turned to stare, transfixed, as she sashayed her way up to the front and held a furtive conversation with Karasuma. Surprisingly, Irina also turned back towards the E-Class, gesturing for Nagisa to come closer. With great trepidation, he did so, wary of the tense lines of her face. It seemed as though he wasn’t in any great danger of a dark moment, though.

“So I hear that you’ve been writing down all of that octopus’ weaknesses in your little notebook.” Irina said, smiling congenially. Nagisa nodded tentatively, and her hand clamped down on his shoulder like a hawk’s claw, hot pink talons pinching into his flesh through two layers of clothing. “You’ll loan it to your big sis, won’t you?”

Nagisa tried to put some distance between them, but Irina’s grip only tightened. “Eh...That’s...But I already told you all of the p-potentially useful weaknesses!” he stammered nervously. Her face shifted, and Nagisa’s brain screamed at him - _Run!_

“Well, when you say something like that, it sounds like you’re hiding something…” she pressed.

“No, like I said - “

Irina abruptly yanked Nagisa’s face into her chest, pressing him into her generous bosom and demanding that he hand over his notebook. Panic closed around his throat like a vice, and his face grew red with embarrassment and anxiety. “Quit it with your breasts, Bitch-sensei!” he tried to say, but it came out strangled.

Eventually, Karasuma dragged her away, allowing a dazed Nagisa to slump backwards, nearly hitting the gym floor. Thankfully, Sugino and Sugaya caught him before he hit the ground. “Thanks...guys,” he mumbled. Sugino set him upright, giving him an encouraging pat on the back.

“No problem, man. Next time, I’ll take the fall for you,” Sugino replied, only half-joking.

Nagisa rolled his eyes yet again and returned his attention to the front of the gym. Karasuma and Irina had introduced themselves, and the student council had begun its spiel. As per the usual, they had forgotten to produce copies of the flyer for the E-Class, so Isogai, as the figurehead of the E-Class, was being ridiculed and laughed at.

 _Just like any other school assembly_ , Nagisa thought for what felt like the millionth time. He cast his eyes at the ground so that he wouldn’t have to see his peers pointing and laughing at the E-Class’s representative.

Suddenly, a warm paper slapped into Nagisa’s hand. _Freshly printed_ , he thought fleetingly. Staring to his right in wonder, Nagisa saw Koro-sensei, in a truly heinous disguise. The E-Class broke out into surprised laughter, and Nagisa smiled, pleased by the turn of events.

As it turned out, the rest of the assembly wasn’t all that bad.

* * *

“You know…” Sugino hedged as they walked through the halls of the main building. “After Koro-sensei arrived, the assembly was sort of...tolerable.”

Kayano nodded in agreement, and it was no secret how much she hated E Class discrimination, so it must have been genuine.

Nagisa opened his mouth to agree, but just then, they walked past a vending machine. Nagisa paused, recalling when Karma had walked with him to school earlier that morning.

_As soon as they were around the corner, Karma gently guided Nagisa against a brick wall. "Okay?" he asked lowly._

_Nagisa huffed softly, amused by Karma's concern._  Twice in a twenty-four hour period? It must be my birthday, _he thought errantly._ "Yeah, _I'm fine. The bruise is covered by my bangs, so...I don't think anyone will notice and ask about it."_

_Karma smirked in lieu of smiling, as he did most times, and laid a soft kiss on Nagisa's forehead over his fringe. "Sorry I couldn't be there."_

For all that Karma was hot-headed and sadistic, he could also be (rarely) caring, if given the chance. Nagisa was endlessly glad that he had worked up the courage to confront Karma about their friendship last year before Karma could completely pull away - otherwise, their relationship may never have reached this point. His mood lifted even further, Nagisa decided to pick up the juice for Karma as he'd asked.

“Need something?” Kayano asked once she noticed that he'd stopped walking.

“Yeah,” Nagisa replied, gesturing vaguely towards the vending machine.

“Alright, well...we’re gonna go on ahead, Nagisa!” Sugino said with a slight wave. Then he turned, chattering with Kayano as he went.

A minute later, Nagisa smiled to himself as he removed the juice box from the machine. A familiar, irritating voice called his name from behind him, and he turned to face it, smile dropping.

“You guys...are kind of forgetting your place, aren’t you?” Takada said, pointing angrily at Nagisa’s chest.

Nagisa’s brows furrowed in confusion and worry. There was malice in their movements, but Nagisa couldn’t sense any dark moments.

“Laughing it up during the assembly?” Tanaka continued. “Just think about how that made the people around you feel.”

 _Think about how it makes_ me _feel,_ Nagisa thought with a healthy amount of regret. _Didn’t we used to be friends?_

“Keep your eyes on the floor where E-Class belongs,” Takada laughed, looming over Nagisa.

Tanaka joined in on the abuse. “After all, there’s no hope left for you losers.”

 _Ah_ , Nagisa thought in realisation. _There are no dark moments to be afraid of_ , he realised. _This is about them establishing dominance with no real substance behind the threats._

Nagisa’s eyes darted around, taking in the main building students milling around and giggling at Nagisa’s expense, taking in Karasuma, who stood nearby, looking disgusted. He frowned, wondering if he could get away with blatant intimidation in this setting.

“Hey, what’s up with that look on your face?” Tanaka growled, grabbing Nagisa by his tie. Nagisa glanced over at Karasuma, seeing that he was being restrained by Koro-sensei. Strangely enough, a sense of calm pervaded his mind. “Say something, E-Class - or I’ll kill you!”

_Kill me…?_

Nagisa watched Tanaka’s face - his flushed, chubby cheeks, his wrinkled, sweaty forehead, and his tightly pursed lips. In his mind’s eye, he could see the tense, tight lines of wrath splitting his mother’s face. He could see into the blood-red of her mouth as it fell open in her fury, see the whites of her eyes as they widened in righteous anger.

_Kill...huh?_

His face remained blank, but his friends-turned-tormentors must have seen something out of the ordinary, for their stances became slightly defensive. Nagisa looked up at them, chuckling quietly. “Kill me? And yet...to me, it looks like you’ve never killed before,” he said.

The two recoiled, their faces slack with disbelief and unease. Satisfied, Nagisa turned on his heel and began heading back the way he had come, excited for the day ahead of him. His friends waved and smiled broadly as he caught up, and the conversation picked up where it had dropped off, everything back to normal.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for checking this out! Kudos and comments are welcome.


End file.
